Pitfalls of Cuff Size and Blood Pressure Measurement

To the Editor Using cuffs and bladders of inappropriate dimensions can be a serious source of error during auscultatory BP measurement. However, this concern may not apply to oscillometric BP measurement in which the role of the cuff is not only to compress the artery but also to act as a signal sensor. The issue of miscuffing with the use of oscillometric BP devices has been addressed by Ishigami et al in a recent article of JAMA Internal Medicine. These authors showed that using bladders that were too narrow or too large was associated with over- or underestimation, respectively, of oscillometric BP. These results were obtained with the use of an oscillometric device, coupled to 4 different cuffs for various arm circumference ranges, per the manufacturer ’s instructions.
Source: JAMA Internal Medicine - Category: Internal Medicine Source Type: research